I removed the fuel tank the other day. As expected, the bottom of the tank was heavily corroded and fouled. I removed all of the dirt, etc. with a power wire brush, and found about 8 areas of deep pitting which appeared to be at least 3/4 of the way through the bottom of hte tank.

I used the West System aluminum etching kit to clean the bottom of the tank, and laminated 3 layers of 6 oz. fiberglass cloth over the bottom using West epoxy. The whole process took about 2 hours.

I hate to sound like a broken record, but I want to urge everyone with an older boat to check the tanks ASAP. My boat spends some time in salt water, so the tanks in the fresh-water boats are probably not as bad. Anyone with an '83 or '84 in salt water should be very concerned about this.

I posted a message a few days ago about a badly corroded water tank (see "Fresh Water Tank"). I now find that the fuel tank also rests directly on the wood sole under the berth. It is likely that the fuel tank is also corroded.

I plan to empty out my fuel tank as soon as possible and then remove it from the boat. If the bottom corrosion is not too bad, I will clean it thoroughly with a power wire brush and apply a few layers of fiberglass and West System epoxy.

I found a good replacement for the water tank at www.boatdepot.com. The Ronco "B394" is a good fit under the starboard berth and is slightly larger than the original tank. You will have to do some minor modifications to fit this tank, and you will have to purchase the fitting relocation kit. The overall cost will run around $300.

I plan to bed this new tank on a 1/2" layer of closed-cell styrofoam insulation, and install two hold-downs at each end.

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